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Report - Winstanley Hall - Wigan - March 2015

Regular User

History: Winstanley Hall was built around 1580 for the Winstanley family. It is a Grade II listed building and also listed as an Ancient Scheduled Monument. The Winstanleys owned this Elizabethan Hall until 1596, when the estate was sold to James Bankes, a London goldsmith and banker. Extra blocks were added in the 17th and 18th centuries. Further and extensive alterations were made in 1811-19 by Lewis Wyatt in a Jacobean style. To the south, on lands belonging to the hall, is a small stone building which was used to house bears that provided entertainment for the hall's guests

The stable court and other buildings to the side of the main house are a prize example of English eccentricity, designed with a heady mix of Norman, Tudor and Baroque motifs. They were built by Meyrick Bankes II a colourful character who travelled extensively in Europe and America and adorned his grounds with statues of animals and monsters

The Bankes family retained ownership of the hall until the 21st century when it was sold for private development. The hall had been kept in good condition until the 1960s when habitation stopped. As the building decayed and the cost of maintaining Winstanley Hall was too much for the family it was sold on and any intended plans for redevelopment have failed leaving the building to decay rapidly.

Notes: Unfortunately, this isn't the most exciting place to visit nowadays as a fair bit of it is falling in on itself which leads me to believe only part of the building might be listed. Most of the rooms are empty and tools/equipment left from the builders are pretty much rusting in the wilderness. Anyway, on with the photos: